Big Brother: First Protector
by ToyHaunter
Summary: This is an updated and revised version of the story I started with as Mask of Two Sides. Rapture as it was is gone. What remains has been maintained by Big Brother, an oddity even in a world where those were once common. His world is gone, his life has no meaning, but he has not stopped yet.


Rapture, a thriving city upon its construction deep below the water's surface. Now, years later, all it had left was the scent of blood and rust that hung in the air. The city was a dying thing, kept going by its mutated workers who had to work around the clock to keep it from collapsing all around them.

In one of the dilapidated buildings, a hulking figure in a heavy diving suit looked out into the water that kept its people trapped. Wordless and tireless, he fired another rivet to seal a leak. The drainage systems were struggling to keep up, slowly clogging by all the blood that was washed away with the water. When another pipe burst, a larger figure pressed the metal closed with his hands as the first riveted a slab of steel over it. Another leak among many that was slowly drowning the city. They were just waiting for the day that the city finally collapses, crushing them all in the rubble. After the first wandered off, the second looked to the pipe once more. He tapped the metal patch and the leaking ended. Satisfied, he wandered off.

In the area below, two men with twisted faces were waiting with patience that was usual for them. Both wore bloody bandages while hooks dangled from withered fingers. They had lost so much of their former selves, but something was keeping them going. Some memory kept resurfacing, driving them to work together. One wiped the blood from his nose with is sleeve, which was already caked in dried blood. Despite the odd memories, they only had their eyes on one thing; ADAM.

The two needed the strange substance that was could rewrite their very DNA, giving them their wild abilities. Unfortunately, its unstable nature resulting in the disastrous mutations and degradation in their bodies. Their bandages covered bloody sores and open wounds that would not properly heal. Scar tissue would replace the flesh, only to break down again when they couldn't get any ADAM. They craved it like addicts, going so far as to consume the dead for a chance at it. They needed it to survive, for without it, their bodies would fall apart, bit by bit, in a horrific death. The need drove them, while the memories that surged in their minds kept them focused. They would do anything for it; even if it meant fighting Big Daddy.

These two were so degraded that it was difficult for the two to even tolerate each other. Only twisted memories of once being brothers kept them together in an unstable relationship. The other splicers who had gathered were the same, only coming together because of memories they could barely understand anymore. They needed ADAM so bad and Big Daddy was not one to take lightly. One mistake and they would be smeared across the walls like red paint or crushed under heavy metal boots like a bug.

"He should be here!" one of the women screeched, clicking the cylinder in her revolver. "I need ADAM!"

"We all do, you wench!" another woman yelled back. Instead of a gun, she had a fire burning in her hand. She was a Houdini Splicer, who vanished in a flash of red when the Leadhead pointed her gun in her direction.

The tension was building because they were waiting for something. Something drew them here. A memory of a great fight. Blood spilled freely while many died. Nobody knew why, but then again, they didn't care to. Their addled minds only cared for the taste of ADAM. They needed to find any source of it soon or else they would all die anyway.

The footsteps of Big Daddy was unmistakable, as was the deep groaning sound that reverberated through the metal halls. Everyone tensed up, some licking their lips in anticipation. The Leadhead Splicers readied their guns while the Thuggish squeezed their pipes and wrenches tight.

"Hurry, Mr. B!"

A Little Sister has come! The tension snapped like a rubber band and the trap was sprung.

A hoard of Spider and Thuggish Splicers came bursting out of the walls and ceiling, losing all thoughts to their twisted instincts. The Leadhead Splicers unloaded a hail of bullets, not caring who they hit. Home-made bombs and fireballs from several Nitro and Houdini Splicers exploded, scattering the initial charge. One woman, her eye melted shut, screamed as a bomb blew off her leg. A man was struck down by a stray fireball, dropping on her back and pinning her down. She grabbed a fallen pistol and fired at random, even taking one shot at the Nitro for taking her leg. In return, a Nitro chucked a make-shift grenade just out of her reach. She only started to scream when the bomb went off.

When their guns clicked and the fire and lightning ran dry, everyone stopped. The Thuggish and Spiders were all dead, but that hardly mattered to the survivors. They would be cannibalized after for any ADAM that could be drawn from their flesh and blood. Even the marrow was not safe. Then, through the burning flames and the dense smoke, they heard a voice.

"Hurry, Mr. B!"

All the surviving splicers tensed up, with the Leadheads looking for any stashed magazines. The Houdinis jabbed syringes full of EVE into their arms, reviving the flames and lightning they harnessed. A lone Nitro threw his remaining bomb, but a large mechanical hand reached out from the smoke and caught it. It was crushed before it could go off and the remains were dropped on the floor, just as the smoke cleared.

The hulking figure was as large as a Big Daddy, but he wore a heavy shell of steel on his shoulders. His right arm was a mechanical monstrosity of pistons and cables wrapped in salvaged steel. Heavy, metal-plated boots clanged with each step, sending shivers down the spines of the survivors. No, this was no Big Daddy, but just as dangerous as Big Sister. The splicers recognized him by the initials 'BB' carved into the side of his helmet.

The huge man held up a tape recorder that squealed, "Hurry, Mr. B!"

They had been tricked! So much death and there never was a Little Sister! One Leadhead screamed and charged in a mad frenzy. He held up his pistol, intent on simply beating the hulk with the butt of his weapon. He leaped off the backs of the fallen, taking to the air, and snapped the grip off in one blow. He didn't even make a dent in the round diving helmet the hulk wore. By making the mistake of just standing there, the hulk swatted him away like a fly. He slammed into the far wall and crumpled on the floor. The glow from the port window in his diving helmet was still green, signalling a passive state. This being of muscle and steel wasn't even concerned enough to change to yellow to show caution.

Then a single bullet shattered the silence as it struck his shoulder, only to bounce off with great force. Another splicer had her rabbit mask shatter after it pierced her skull and dropped her from her perch. To those who had been watching, it was like the air around the point of impact had twisted around him, sending the bullet away with all of its force. The hulk tilted his head and cast his glowing gaze over the cooling body. The woman had died instantly and fell into a heap of scrap metal. Her blood was pooling beneath her as it dripped through her torn clothes.

The hulk took out his tape recorder once more and fast-forwarded it to another point. When he held it up, it screeched, "Hi, Big Brother!"

Half of the surviving splicers bailed out when they heard that. The realization had finally sunk into their mad minds, telling them to run at all costs. There was no victory here. There was no ADAM. There was only death. Those who remained threw all they could, from fire and lightning to their empty guns. All of it had no effect as he held up his hand, projecting a swirling rift of some kind that absorbed it all. He calmly and slowly walked forward, taking in their lightning bolts and fireballs. One of the splicers tried rolling a gas cylinder towards him, only for him to take two long steps forward and kicked it. One of the women didn't even have time to scream as she was taken with it, sent flying down the hall behind them before it exploded.

After the rift faded, the hulk's hand was surrounded by another type of rift. This one wasn't recognized by any of the splicers, as it removed his metal hand and replaced it with a drill. When the thing revved up, the engine roared to life and spewed smoke like a mechanical beast. There was a crash as the drill struck one of the Houndinis from where he stood. Embedded in his stomach, he was dragged down by the cable attached to the drill bit. He lifted his mask and spit a glob of blood on the hulk before he was tossed aside. Nobody could react when the hulk suddenly dashed at break-neck speed, propelled by some unseen force. Another could only whimper as he was run through down to the hulk's elbow. Pulling free, the drill tore what was left of the man in two, revealing the hole in the metal wall behind him. Now he was all on his own with nobody but the corpses, having scared off the rest. Satisfied, his glowing eyes changed from yellow to green as he pulled out his tape recorder. He switched out the tape, sat his heavy bulk down, and pressed play.

"Hi, Big Brother! Come with us! I can smell an angel!" It was the voice of a little girl, a Little Sister from a time long lost.

"Come on, Big Brother!" another Little Sister cried. "You're so slow!"

"Wait for me," a gravely voice grumbled. It sounded more like someone talking on a radio than with a normal voice.

His two mechanical fingers touched the initials 'BB' on the side of his helmet and the broken voice module grafted to his neck. It was a modified device, but that hardly mattered anymore. It had been split in two with nobody left to fix it. He pressed rewind and watched the fish outside the window go by. When it hit the beginning, he hit play.

"Hi! I'm here with my Big Brother! Why are we doing this again?"

"So I can remember what we do," BB replied. "I don't want to forget."

"Okay!"

He stopped the recording and sat there, listening to the dripping water and creaking metal. There was a flash from the Vita-Chamber down the hall as it spat out several splicers, alive and whole. It wasn't a surprise to the hulking figure, as this was how the splicers were still alive. Something was horribly wrong with the chambers, as they would revive just about anybody now. The splicers would fight, die, and would be reborn so they could feed off any dead once they return. Only those who died by trauma were revived. Those who wasted away would never come out of the chamber ever again. The city was dying, but it would have to rot to its broken core before it was abandoned.

To add to the issue, some of the fallen were reviving on their own. The Resurrection tonic inside them was allowing those with intact bodies to return to life. These ones took one look at the hulking figure and ran off in their weakened state. Even the crazies knew when to run and hide. The impression Big Brother left on them than even Big Sister, as he was a threat they could avoid. As long as they didn't bother him, he would leave them alone. Today was different because their numbers had gathered together. He couldn't have them run amok and bring the whole place down. While that would solve the issue, he wasn't done searching. There was something here, something that called for him. A memory that he didn't know existed until some point when he awoke, only to find that Rapture was collapsing. His Little Sister was gone, the Big Sisters having taken their places in this forsaken place.

Putting the tape recorder away, he went hunting for more of his things. He was slow in his movements, for he had all the time in the world. He had no idea if he could even age, much less die of disease or injury by this point. His flesh, beyond his right arm, could regenerate. More than once he found himself returning to life. Every time he died, what hopes or thoughts of escape left him, bit by bit. He had no life outside of Rapture and every revival was a reminder that even the afterlife had no place for him. Still, despite all this, he kept walking. He walked down the hall, ignoring the rot and rust, until he found his hiding spot.

He pushed his hand through a crack in the metal wall, forcing his way through to find a sack. He fished through its contents until he found a tape and put it in his tape recorder. He switched tapes and bent the metal back into place like it was nothing. When he raised his head, a flash of red light from the ceiling. The Big Sister was back again. There were so few of them, with a number of their bodies scattered around what was left of Rapture. Those left were revived as their fights went on, but this one in particular was learning from it. She had stayed alive for the past month, where the others had barely gone three days without injury or traumatic death. To sate her curiosity and send her on her way, he pushed the play button.

"Hello. My name is Patrick Drake and I am a resident of Rapture. It is now June 12, 1954. My assignment is to get close to the 'biomass', as they call it, that is located on the ocean floor. The scientists don't know what it is, only that they know it has something to do with ADAM. I'm recording this so that I won't be forgotten if something happens to me. I don't know what will happen, or if the thing is safe, but I want to do something for my new home. We can't get anywhere if we don't take little risk now and again, right?"

Big Brother popped out the tape and looked for another one. The Big Sister slowly came out of the hole in the ceiling, the glow from her diving helmet going dim. His flashed yellow for a moment when he heard a sound, but soon turned back to green as he pressed play.

"It is now December 15, 1954. From what I've been told, something distorted the area around the biomass as I got close. I... I don't remember anything, but I'm currently missing my right arm. There is no wound, either. It's like my arm simple ceased to exist, leaving no wound or scar. It feels like I fell into a dream, one where I died, and was reborn by waking up. I was told by my doctor that I'm not only okay, but I'm actually very healthy after what happened. I feel pretty damn good too, despite losing my right arm. They're doing tests on me, just to make sure. I'm sure I'll be alright. They're even designing a metal arm for me, though, I have no idea how they think to attach it. I have nothing left, not even a stump."

The Big Sister dropped from her perch when Big Brother looked away. She crept behind some fallen rubble and kept quiet as he slipped another tape in.

"February 2, 1955. A lot's been going on. I don't know the details because I seem to be a test subject now. The exposure to the biomass has... done something to my body and they were able to implant a slug inside me. It's currently wriggling around inside me. The process is extremely unique, as the process killed every other male they've done it to. But it doesn't seem to work quite as well as was hoped, as any ADAM breaks down and is absorbed into my blood. Nobody can figure out why, but it's like it can't exist outside of my body. I don't like how they just put this thing inside me without my permission, but I've been getting stronger every day. I guess there's a silver lining in this. Also, they attached the new arm directly to the bone. I feel no pain as I move around and I can actually feel with it. It's strange, but then again, everything so far has been."

"March 23, 1957. From the rumors I've been hearing, a lot's been going on. Andrew Ryan is fighting against some guy named Fontaine. I thought Fontaine was the one who helped bring about those plasmids the scientist guys around here were developing. They put a few in me just a few months ago and they are a true marvel. If only the ladies could see me now. I have muscles like a god and I never tire. Course, the only way I'm getting out is if I help protect one of the 'Little Sisters', as they're called. When I got a picture of one of them, they looked just like your average little girl, but their eyes glow like someone put fireflies in their heads. But after being in here so long, I wouldn't mind if it meant I could see my family. I bet they're so worried about me."

"April 11, 1957. I'm finally out. Sorry if my voice sounds strange, it's the new voice box they attached. The guys in the labs put me in this suit so I could be useful around Rapture. It's armored, so I can take a hit, and it allows me to go outside into the ocean again. It's uncomfortable at times, as my body is still growing and changing in places, but it'll do. I've also been given the responsibility of taking care of Sara, my Little Sister. It's strange calling her that, cause she's not really my sister. I don't know why, but I feel some kind of connection with her and the rest of them. Even the Big Daddies sort of like me, or at least they don't seem to mind me being around their Little Sisters. The girls have even started to call me 'Big Brother'. I guess it fits, what with the slugs in our bellies. We're just one big twisted family. With slugs in our bellies..."

The sounds of tiny feet could be heard before a young girl cried, "Big Brother, come on! I can smell an angel!"

"Alright, you wait for me this time. This whole 'angel' thing really creeps me out, but if all this keeps Andrew Ryan happy, then I get to stay out of the labs. I just wish the Big Daddies could talk since everyone else is scared of me. I can't get a real adult conversation anymore."

"Hurry, Big Brother!"

"Alright, signing off now. Sara's getting impatient. I really need to find another tape."

Big Brother stopped for a second and looked out into the ocean. A school of fish were swimming by, all content with the presence of each other. Rapture was like that once, but now it was every man for himself. The only time the Splicers would work together was when there was ADAM to be had. The swarm he'd recently dealt with was just such a group. But once the deed is done, they would go their separate ways if they haven't killed each other first.

Just as he was about to start moving again, his heavy foot hit something. It was a doll of some sort. Different pieces were put together on a baseball to make it look like a Big Daddy. Now why would it be here of all places? He looked up, but the Big Sister was gone, her curiosity sated. He put the doll daddy in his sack of objects he found. A genetic key, an empty plasmid vial labeled 'Electro Bolt', and the remains of a Little Sister's needle. All had been found while he wandered the remains of Rapture.

A loud shot pierced the silence and he noticed a damaged Big Daddy trying to bolt a leak in the wall. His aim was off and his broken arm left him without the strength to plant his rivet gun in the right place. He must have been attacked some time ago, for his wounds looked healed over. There was no way he could ever go outside ever again with the shape his armor was in. But even with his enhanced body, there was a limit.

The Big Daddy, a Rosie, dropped his rivet gun and fell to his knees. He groaned again and again, each time weaker and shorter. The lights in his helmet would slowly dim. As Big Brother approached, the Big Daddy turned and groaned. Big Brother groaned back and noticed how bad the damage was. Chunks of the Big Daddy's armor were missing, with heavy scar tissue growing haphazardly from the openings. His breathing grew labored, but he didn't fight it. Why should he? He served his purpose and would finally feel at peace. Big Brother watched as the light in his helmet went black and he stopped breathing. He didn't mourn the Big Daddy's passing, for he knew that he was finally free from this place.

He picked up the rivet gun and sealed the leak. Then he pressed the metal into place, making sure it would hold. It wouldn't last forever, but it would prevent flooding for some time. Then he dragged the Big Daddy out of the area and to a place where he could find some oil. He laid the body to rest and used the oil to light it on fire. This wasn't the first funeral pyre he made. He probably had yet to come to his last.

With the rivet gun hanging from his arm, the armored hulk that was Big Brother pressed the reverse button on his tape recorder. Then he quickly stopped it and waited, listening to the sound of the fire. This time, he did not notice the red light hovering on the wall above.

He pressed the play button and heard, "I just wish the Big Daddies could talk since everyone else is scared of me."


End file.
